Headaches and Melatonin

Dawn A. Marcus, MD, of the University of Pittsburgh weighs in on the relationship between melatonin and headaches…

Melatonin is a hormone produced in the pineal gland in the brain that regulates sleep. Many studies have linked sleep with migraine. For example, studies show that headaches become more frequent when people regularly sleep 6 or fewer hours per night. Melatonin may also affect pain centers in the brain.

Melatonin has been directly studied as a migraine prevention treatment. In one study, 3 mg of melatonin was taken 30 minutes before bedtime for 3 months, the number of migraines decreased by almost two-thirds and migraine severity decreased by half. A few people taking melatonin reported side effects of excessive sleepiness, hair loss, and increased sexual libido.

Interestingly, melatonin levels have been shown to decrease during menses in women with menstrual migraine, which may suggest that taking melatonin around your menstrual period may help reduce menstrual migraines….. Headwise National Headache Foundation Volume 3, Issue 2 2013